Green Cleaners: The Homemade Shower Spray

A few years ago I started making an effort to buying green cleaning products. The thing is, most conventional cleaning products by themselves aren’t that bad. It’s OK to have one or two conventional products in your cleaning arsenal. But when you look at your home as whole and realize the amount of things under your sink could probably create a bomb, it’s time for a change.

Shower spray is one of those things that I always seem to go through quickly. I used Method’s Daily Shower Cleaner for a while but it gets pricey and I figured I’m probably paying for water, soap and a little fragrance.

And I was right! That’s pretty much what shower spray is. I collected a few home recipes for shower spray and modified them a little based on the products I have on hand. Also, I’m a big fan of IKEA’s spray bottles (pictured above).

The L.A. Lady’s Shower Spray

16 ounces distilled water (the distilled is very important if you have hard water or well water. Part of what makes your shower scummy is the hard water build up. Distilled water is simply clean water. “Drinking” water or spring water often has additives to make it taste better. They’re harmless, but not what you want for a cleaning product).

1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide

1/2 cup rubbing alcohol (I’ve seen people use vodka. I think it’s a waste of vodka! But it does help the alcohol smell if it bothers you. Obviously there are cheap vodkas so this might be a good option for you.)

2 tsp. dish washer rinse aid (I had some rinse aid from Earth Friendly Products but I’m not supposed to use soaps with fruit acids in them on my flatware. Now at least I have another use for it.)

Optional: 5-8 drops of lavender essential oil. If you have natural stone in your bathroom, double check to make sure it’s OK to use acidic citrus oils on your stone.

To Make:

Pour water into a pitcher or large measuring cup (maybe 4 cups or more to be safe)

Add hydrogen peroxide

Add rubbing alcohol

Add dish soap

Add rinse aid

Optional: Add your essential oil

Stir gently to make sure the ingredients are mixed

Funnel the mixture into your favorite spray bottle

Unless you’re spraying three showers a day, it’s important to make smaller batches of this stuff. The hydrogen peroxide loses it’s zing after a while when mixed with these ingredients. I’m a huge fan of IKEA’s spray bottles. Recently, they discontinued the ones pictured above but now we have TOMAT!

These are TERRIBLE! The leak! Don’t buy them.

If you half the recipe above, it fits perfectly inside the old IKEA spray bottles but I have yet to see if they fit in the new ones (they look about the same size, no?). Update: I just tested these out and they leak! Terribly! The angle of the spraying mechanism drips and I get more cleaning solution dripping down my hand than I do on whatever I’m cleaning. If IKEA fixes these I’ll repost.I just get out the trusty label maker so Mr. Los Angeles knows what’s inside these technicolor spray bottles.

I clean with water, vinegar, lemon, peppermint, and tea tree. Lemon helps get rid of the nasty dirt, peppermint kills bacteria and smells fresh, and tea tree kills mold. I also sometimes add cinnamon to help kill some types of viruses.